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Significant Figures - Pharmaceutical Analysis

Significant figures indicate the precision of a measurement. There are two types of numbers - exact and approximate. Approximate numbers measured have some uncertainty. The number of significant figures is the number of digits known with reliability. When measuring, only reliable digits are recorded. Calculations with measurements follow rules - addition and subtraction keep the least number of significant figures, while multiplication and division keep the least reliable measurement's significant figures.

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Chandrashekhar Singh
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6K views14 pages

Significant Figures - Pharmaceutical Analysis

Significant figures indicate the precision of a measurement. There are two types of numbers - exact and approximate. Approximate numbers measured have some uncertainty. The number of significant figures is the number of digits known with reliability. When measuring, only reliable digits are recorded. Calculations with measurements follow rules - addition and subtraction keep the least number of significant figures, while multiplication and division keep the least reliable measurement's significant figures.

Uploaded by

Chandrashekhar Singh
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Significant Figures

What is a significant figure?


There are 2 kinds of numbers:
Exact: the amount of money in your account. Known with
certainty.
Approximate: weight, heightanything MEASURED. No
measurement is perfect.

The number of significant figures in a result is


simply the number of figures that are known
with some degree of reliability. The number 13.2
is said to have 3 significant figures. The number
13.20 is said to have 4 significant figures

When to use Significant figures


When a measurement is recorded only those
digits that are dependable are written down.
If you measured the width of a paper with your ruler
you might record 21.7cm.
To a mathematician 21.70, or 21.700 is the same.
21.700cm to a analyst means the measurement is
accurate to within one thousandth of a cm.
If you used an ordinary ruler, the smallest marking
is the mm, so your measurement has to be
recorded as 21.7cm.

Rules for significant figures


Rule : All digits are significant
starting with the first non-zero digit
on the left.
Exception to rule : In whole numbers that
end in zero, the zeros at the end are not
significant.

How many sig figs?


7
40
0.5
0.00003
5
7 x 10
7,000,000

1
1
1
1
1
1

2nd Exception to rule : If zeros are


sandwiched between non-zero
digits, the zeros become significant.
3rd Exception to rule : If zeros are
at the end of a number that has a
decimal, the zeros are significant.
These zeros are showing how accurate
the measurement or calculation are.

How many sig figs here?

1.2
2100
56.76
4.00
0.0792
7,083,000,000

2
2
4
3
3
4

How many sig figs here?

3401
2100
2100.0
5.00
0.00412
8,000,050,000

4
2
5
3
3
6

What about calculations with


sig figs?
Rule: When adding or
subtracting measured
numbers, the answer can have
no more places after the
decimal than the LEAST of
the measured numbers.

Add/Subtract examples
2.45cm + 1.2cm = 3.65cm,
Round off to = 3.7cm
7.432cm + 2cm = 9.432
round to
9cm

Multiplication and Division

Rule: When multiplying


or dividing, the result
can have no more
significant figures than
the least reliable
measurement.

A couple of examples
56.78 cm x 2.45cm = 139.111
2
Round to
139cm

75.8cm x 9.6cm = ?

2
cm

2000 ml 0.2 ml

20.00 ml 20 ml

52.50 g

.0900 g

.0042 g

1.0000 g

4.0 cm

40 mm

40. mm

.0040m

Summary
1) ALL non-zero numbers (1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9) are
ALWAYS significant.
2) ALL zeroes between non-zero numbers are
ALWAYS significant.
3) ALL zeroes which are SIMULTANEOUSLY to
the right of the decimal point AND at the end of
the number are ALWAYS significant.
4) ALL zeroes which are to the left of a written
decimal point and are in a number >= 10 are
ALWAYS significant.

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